Reich
insignia.]] The Reich is the name of one of the four main factions of the Tannhäuser universe, corresponding roughly to the Central Powers or Nazi Germany. They are the main antagonists of the Tannhäuser franchise. As the aggressors in the Great War, they fight the Union faction for control of the world. Most major Reich characters are of German nationality. History The Reich started, technically, with Hoss Harbinger, an Atlantean prince thrown out of time, determined to manipulate time and space to restore his people. Harbinger spent the intervening millennia gathering resources and servants in order to restore his people. He came to see that founding a faction dedicated to unearthing and harnessing the occult would accomplish his goals. The Reich as it would become known came into being on April 30, 1877, when the archpriests of the Triberium Carium—with Harbinger's assistance—revived Heinrich Reffle von Richtenberg as an undead Kaiser. Over the next few days, the Reich's families would all swear allegiance to the Kaiser, and he would rule unopposed by his own people.Tannhauser chronology. In appreciation for Harbinger's assistance, the Kaiser appointed him as Reichdoktor, second in command of the entire Reich, only under the Kaiser himself. The Kaiser administers the Reich as an oligarchy, with a number of noble families having considerable power but with ultimate power resting with the Kaiser. The people of the Reich worship the Kaiser as a deity, and they are told to recite an oath each morning: "Service to the Reich—may it never end!"Frankenstahl announcement page. The Reich often have very little regard for their own soldiers, and they have a notoriously high attrition rate. Reich officers usually won't think twice about sacrificing their own troops for the cause, even in large numbers. During the assault at Częstochowa, the Kaiser bombed his own defense fortification, costing the lives of tens of thousands of his own men. Marquis General von Heïzinger allowed several of his own men to be transformed permanently into demonic Stosstruppen. Reichdoktor Hoss Harbinger used the Enigma machine to turn even weak soldiers into a massive fighting force with a single collective mind. Recruitment has remained a constant concern for the Reich with its high turnover rate; Reich officials have been known to use techniques developed by Carl Jung to take ordinary Reich citizens and effectively mold them into soldiers. The Reich has long had great interest in the occult, often to the point of obsession. The Kaiser and his generals have looked to the U-Worlds, seeking to form pacts with the demons within. In 1900, the Kaiser vowed to either rule the entirety of Earth or destroy it, heightening tensions with the Union and the Matriarchy factions. In 1908, tensions rose even further in the Tunguska incident of 1908, when one of Nikola Tesla's super-generators triggered a massive explosion. All-out war would break out in 1914, with the Reich as the aggressor. The Great War has consisted mostly of the Reich fighting the Union, but there have been some alliances with the other factions. With the Nippon Accords, the Reich agreed to ally with the Shōgunate, enabling soldiers from the two factions to work side by side. Of the Reich's personnel, Marquis General Hermann von Heïzinger has worked particularly hard at accessing the U-Worlds. For decades, he has researched the Obscura Cardinal Cornerstones, which serve as portals to the U-Worlds when unlocked. In 1949, Heïzinger's investigation would take him to Książ. The Union's 42nd Marine Special Forces unit pursued him, which marked the start of Operation: Tannhäuser. Gameplay The Reich faction specializes in occult and demonic powers. Reich soldiers tend to specialize in offensive magic or mental duels, especially von Heïzinger and Harbinger. The Reich has a number of attacks that go out of path, leaving them less constricted than other factions in terms of attack range. The Reich also has a particularly strong defensive game; several of their units and bonus tokens make excellent use of overwatch. References Category:Factions